Mr Lichtman's statement came after attorney Adam Fels laid out the US government's case, describing how prosecutors would prove that Guzman rose from a low-level marijuana trafficker in the 1970s to lead the powerful Sinaloa Cartel.

Mr Fels said that Guzman, 61, eventually established relationships with Colombian cartels that allowed him to make billions of dollars moving cocaine.He said jurors would see evidence of seized cocaine shipments adding up to "more than a line of cocaine for every single person in the United States".

Mr Fels told the jury that Guzman left a trail of violence, turning parts of Mexico into war zones as he fought rivals to expand his reach.

He said jurors would hear of how Guzman shot two members of a rival cartel, and ordered them to be thrown into holes and burned.

Guzman faces 17 criminal counts and a possible life sentence if he is convicted.

His charges relate to drug trafficking, money laundering and firearms.

The prosecutors' witnesses are expected to include former Guzman associates who are now co-operating with the US government in exchange for more favourable treatment.

Zambada's brother Jesus "El Rey" Zambada and son Vicente Zambada may be included.

However, Mr Lichtman attacked their credibility.

Image:Guzman was arrested in 2014

"Why is the government going so far in this case using these gutter human beings as the evidence?" he asked.

"It's because the conviction of Chapo Guzman is the biggest prize this prosecution could ever dream of."

Mr Lichtman urged jurors to "keep an open mind" and consider that both Mexican and US law enforcement could be corrupt.

"They work together when it suits them, Mayo (Zambada) and the United States government," he said.

Mr Lichtman also strove to humanise the defendant, describing his childhood selling oranges, cheese and bread door to door in a poor village.